from the online editor
He will resign from office on February 7th. In a surprise press conference, the Labor leader said: I no longer have the energy to carry on. Then the proposal to his partner: Clarke, let’s get married. The elections will take place on October 14th
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced her resignation on February 7. Visibly emotional, the 42-year-old Labor leader said in a surprise press conference in which she couldn’t hold back her emotions and tears that over the summer she had hoped to find the energy to carry on but hadn’t. Reflecting on his future, he said: ‘Being Prime Minister has been the greatest honor of my life and I would like to thank the New Zealanders for the tremendous privilege of leading the country for the past five and a half years. These have been the most fulfilling five and a half years of my life. I’m leaving because this privileged job also comes with a great responsibility of knowing when you’re the right person to lead the country and when you’re not. The time has come for me. The next elections, he announced, will take place on October 14.
Ardern took office on October 26, 2017, at 37, becoming New Zealand’s youngest prime minister in 150 years and the country’s third female prime minister after Jenny Shipley (1997-1999) and Helen Clark (1999-2008): To be Prime Minister I all by given to me – he said at the press conference – but a role that also took a lot from me. You can and should only do this job when you have a full tank, plus some reserve for the unexpected and unforeseen challenges that inevitably arise.
The news shook Labour, the Prime Minister was at the party executive retreat in Napier when she announced her departure: They were surprised but they understood me – she explained -. If I don’t have what it takes, I’ll have to let someone else do the work. The Labor Party will vote on a new leader and candidate for Prime Minister on Sunday. The Prime Minister said that her team is fully capable of taking the country forward and winning the next elections: I’m not going because I don’t think we can win the elections, I’m going because I think we can and we can will. No secret scandal behind her resignation: I am human. We give as much as possible for as long as possible and then the time will come. And for me this is the moment. I would be doing the New Zealanders a disservice if I continued.
Then the words dedicated to the family. After remembering the constant support of her family, who supported her in this very difficult decision, she turned directly to her partner Clarke Gayford, who was waiting for her during the press conference. First she gave a thought to her daughter and then to him: A Neve, Mama can’t wait to see you when you go to school this year. And to Clarke, let’s get married. He hadn’t said anything to the little one about his resignation: 4-year-olds are talkative, we couldn’t take the risk. As for the wedding, the Prime Minister was forced to announce the postponement to January a year ago as her government decided on restrictions to counter the new wave of Covid-19 in New Zealand. There was then a very long hug between the two. Ardern wants New Zealanders to remember her as someone who has always tried to be kind and said one of her great privileges is working with the Māori.
January 19, 2023 (change January 19, 2023 | 03:30)
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